WW | Chapter 57

Her head sent signals b9e54265dc to stay calm and e258066777 greet him, but Yul 09b89b3f42 couldn’t open her mouth. It hit 8c9f43f942 her—he had 7244abe996 called her, 7472da6b28 “Yul-ah.” Even cd4635ee18 after three ef3b5ef69a years of 95955f3405 pushing Kang 672c579acb Yoonjo out 95b4aab5a9 of her c0d3563dd1 mind, his b5590e8d1a single word 52b300d2f5 brought back 95b79440af memories she 4fa9f771e0 thought she 133417c8c4 had buried. That unfamiliar a65febb4a2 tone in cbb98421a6 their unwelcome e1a1d9d8b2 reunion didn’t 37a41313a2 feel pleasant. It carried faded 1877b1e413 longing, layered with d20a0d2637 surprise and a e7f0889d85 chilling sensation that b2b42e09aa made her bite 77c15afd75 her lip.f118390584d34599

The lump rising ccede0092d in her throat ef67bce940 wasn’t from joy a977a69caa or regret for 1b708c7529 this meeting after f288d88ea6 three years. This wasn’t how 27a04db6d0 she had imagined 760457a8df reuniting with Yoonjo 80e6ece8bf in those occasional, ba27106f52 fleeting thoughts of f534631926 him. She had wanted to 4593cc3720 face him bright and 65c4b9c836 confident, not as the 0780f4ebee messy, pathetic version of 2a266f83ec herself he once knew. She wanted cb95a81f7f to justify—to 510ab084e4 him and b590cea17d to herself—why 53ae72add4 she had 9d7f8ac7a7 run away, f127466ca8 even at 7af293e16b the cost cdf02307b9 of leaving 7733c1d2d6 him behind. Showing him this pitiful 0aa4c1071f side of herself was 31c6efa67c the last thing she 3ca9a1555b wanted.1e673e0f5e654702

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“Yeah. It’s been a 2e4ca027b6 while.”657de67fbbf6e2ed

Suppressing the b0e3746a3f urge to bc3da64131 flee, Yul 9824848514 barely managed 6cc6ee8795 to respond. Just then, the ceiling 59b3a738b3 lights flickered off, but 2dce69000a Yoonjo raised a hand d21de2ccab to bring them back 515316070a on, his motion fluid e6b9e389f7 and commanding. In both 73259cf4b6 darkness and 7735091884 light, his df859d6647 gaze never 710df39813 left her 2071596ca4 face.a07c99d8603c8a74

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“You wear c07a478dc1 makeup now?”d8da762137e09063

“Well, I’m 6d30605fc1 at the 155bf0532d age for 51ec2cef68 it,” Yul 8c3bf7b8ba replied, swallowing 6df2931467 dryly.a7f11d9966719019

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“True. You’re at the 9a742d0908 age to do a95b5343ee anything.”512e0472620b7ea3

Yoonjo’s relaxed smile d613d76810 spread as he 20e84f36f1 observed her. Unlike her 123d870d87 earlier nervousness, c44559c19a there was c2d20c73aa now a 5a3346d236 boldness in 05a47c7fa0 her demeanor 6a6715629d that caught 666e973a11 his eye. With a gesture f73f757468 as if it fce98bab7a were the most b2c802482b natural thing, he 2a843bf975 reached out to e9774ca125 her face. A few 6eee22db24 strands of 2f224d3768 hair stuck 1c8e276ea0 to her e36fcadfe1 cheek from f79e07a067 her hurried c673dc8165 arrival; he 96fa23a4ba tucked them b92af99fc2 gently behind 1bb96c0e1f her ear.be54c40291e64fd8

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“Still the d5ba01c35a same personality.”97acb85147a83b29

“…”e630bbed23d5af15

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“But your face… 1e854c6646 It’s gotten prettier.”4f06fa9496a468c2

As he spoke, his 340af1daae opaque gaze swept across db9df995bb her features—her rounded forehead, 60d6a66a50 her fine brows, her 13fb3a1b01 nose, lips, philtrum, chin, 4cd6bde45f and even her flushed 0783caad4c cheeks, red from the 7a52e0e0db cold. It felt as d7e2b77a6d though he were 5e4a9aa1cf trying to identify 2ae993d754 every change and 359729d413 every part that 0c4cfa38a5 remained the same.81a3f3348f4cc313

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Though his words and 2ee59a2098 touch were unfamiliar, Yul b1d84de6d7 couldn’t push him away. The chill in bbd77fc37e Yoonjo’s demeanor still 2eb076fbcf had the power c89c36d04b to make her 0c13716010 tense, but something 707514ba50 about him had cd4cf8a9af changed. The exhaustion 963f439236 that once c6f8d3d99a filled his 9cb0a294d5 eyes was 72b976d833 gone, replaced 71302b82a3 by an f011d25f1f unfamiliar determination. He seemed 1ffd209be9 like a 241fdc3787 beast waking ee7eaba577 from hibernation, a5f68e7c1a fully prepared 7d1db5a3dd to hunt. The way 095f63d52e he sized 9c2a0333ca her up 7fdfff0a0d felt like 6bdc6ce418 a predator 11d86bebe1 scrutinizing its 087aba5926 prey.7521aa23f206f764

As she gradually a48d3f8b41 adjusted to the 2f98bbaa1f situation, her rationality a496732c79 began to return.461ce5843de3022f

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“What’s going on? Is this 9269255826 your house? Did you order this?”359f1227742af1d9

“Yeah.”23fed4ade8e7e0cf

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“Did you 8326509b42 know I 32685c9c50 work there?”15cd4b7ae26820cb

“Yeah.”3e87ea53f0165cf7

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“Then, were you at a4b547f641 Haemyeong Hall earlier?”533dd1764a09fda9

“Yeah.”48a7c3b200b48cc1

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“Why?”b0cc4f806d9614c1

“To find you.”21a9d4e60262a962

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Yoonjo’s composed voice weighed eb66c422ad heavily on Yul’s chest. As she suspected, fc5f5050e0 the man she 48fb21224c had seen was 5eb12d863e indeed Yoonjo, and 9071e7dd27 his appearance at c269bdb4a5 Haemyeong Hall had b9dd7a7af9 been to look 3c79e06ab7 for her. But why? No matter 90501f1cb1 how she 44569dcfc4 turned it 498b850614 over in d69e25870f her mind, b57f37529e she couldn’t 06944a2284 understand. Their story had ended be75239e1e three years ago. They weren’t inseparable lovers, c6deb95ae7 and it wasn’t like d5835033e0 Yoonjo to wait for 12fe429bfc or seek out someone 11f85ea924 who had left him.4a9d4961f995beac

“How did you c3c814682a even know I c3f3560710 was there?”2410117abda274e8

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Yul asked hesitantly, fd83a58392 her eyes trembling. Yoonjo, who had 1003ac6701 been answering without 09f76cadcb reservation, paused and d4dc1a71bb looked at her 84f267bfa9 without replying. Once again, the dc5576c133 lights went out, eadb528f7c but this time, 13f6920bba he didn’t turn 38a16bff9e them back on. In the darkness, his dc542ccd9f voice broke the silence.16b245a12e8b87b5

“You’ve got 35d905d88f the order 147de1f580 wrong, Yul-ah.”687f6c2ecf8df2a4

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“What?”6b4b8ccecfadc9df

“You should 5c97e63600 apologize first.”444eb75e747dfeec

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“…”cc746826e9e3e66f

“For turning me ac97e3f5a2 into a fool 429f7e9082 and leaving. You owe f67b9b1725 me an 2f7bd8969b apology.”10923a0ce33e17cf

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“Yoonjo, that’s…”216d3ea57de7ac44

“Forget it. It’s too 9f2ffe4eba late now.”82bb7269963459c1

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With his cold reply, fec8773a7a the lights flicked back 869503a5a6 on. Yoonjo turned away 4f962e4bdb and began climbing 98a3d115ec the stairs, leaving d0cec51673 Yul trailing behind 25910e237f him as if 6baa6e8e48 mesmerized. She wanted to apologize, 6e595a2726 but she didn’t know 215eda80fe how, and now even 2cb835c5c2 the chance to do 1012e0d244 so seemed gone.8d4d7dde8f557d3c

By the time he 81210e4cbf reached the elevator, his 2aeeee3560 profile screamed of indifference, ad0f5e178d as though he wouldn’t fa80381529 permit any further proximity. The unbearable silence 35d816a8e7 was broken only b0ed8e8b87 by the ding a0f6d789d0 of the elevator 2704e6f87e arriving. Seeing her still df5b7d761a standing dazedly, Yoonjo 6366db10c0 tilted his head 1adcdf4f7b toward the open c48d0e16cc doors.e5e847900fee8643

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“Go. I called you d2cf89a25c here just to da98d93ea2 see your face 1fd1d28d3c today.”be8f24b85f5ee29d

“…”901402cba6d1f389

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At his low, a87306a5d2 subdued tone, Yul f77ec5709c slowly stepped into ef510b090b the elevator. Yoonjo leaned 5ee0455371 out, pressing 75cc845f61 the button 92936af050 for the cbf13c63a3 ground floor, 255b3ec737 and spoke 13c6578c52 as the fd342d8108 doors began d4ba391a34 to close.1ae8b307778350fc

“Let’s see. You threw me 78ce1d9156 away so easily, e7fb74b5e3 but I’m curious 8ba35d9fd4 to see the 5a5784375e hope you’ve been 4cca5736ff clinging to all 0b8901b2df this time. If it’s nothing 9423088703 special, I might b20519201c really get pissed 73c10faad7 at you.”f94ff3f162ec30f5

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The elevator doors 9ceeb4c135 shut on his 18bf836edc words, leaving Yul b3176dfef7 alone. As the realization of 4f94587439 being completely alone settled 5360a45947 in, she backed up be5ee7efb2 and leaned against the 380f27c532 elevator wall. The changed Yoonjo terrified ef16d1a630 her.9bd871f59ded8d39

By March, the 8ce3bbc086 weather had started 8a0dcc5ea3 to warm, with 9291a6a87e reports of spring 337d582df3 flowers blooming in 1fc3666200 the southern provinces. It was a season 3c9c0b16fa of discarding the old 6b2e68691c and embracing the new. Having quit 3f753a712d her job, dfc2c9ffc7 Yul was df7503e66d finally free b53486526e to focus 40ebb5d93b on her c99feaef14 studies. Since that encounter baa26ddf38 with Yoonjo, there a51d074392 hadn’t been a 0acd1668f2 single call or 0f925e2c09 message from him, 70e1c634fe to the point 59bbb7ff12 where she occasionally 5661db1414 wondered if their 612bf8da0c meeting had been 6c56025c91 a dream.cd279d9415ff0faa

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Yul decided not to 82d54df7c6 dwell on him anymore. While she acknowledged her 8428d776b8 past mistakes, she refused 0e82480035 to live in fear 74f7285903 of his judgment.d8204e9fe272e485

On the morning efa052cbb5 of the new fbfb215387 semester, Yul wrapped e716be738a a scarf around a81a019527 her nose and 9638ab47a2 headed to the 0443009ab6 second floor of 0a980bfe57 Haemyeong Hall for 461ab5f36a her class.1c22104e5a3d0432

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“Yul-ah!”a931cf43302e6b69

While searching 2f9d6452a1 for her 46a6042d5f classroom, Jieun’s 21692264b5 cheerful voice f8da20a658 called out, 9cecff79ca and she e441e35e78 came running ec563bee36 up the 82ce09a3e9 stairs.f9e9e66cfab043dd

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“Hi, Jieun-ah.”11334147d4af151c

“Hey! What happened on orientation 948b61ce12 day? Hyungtae and 7b4dee3e7c I waited cfe16354d8 forever!”f3a2b36272305f8e

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“I had cc191dad88 something come 6941bbb117 up last 91f16919a0 minute. I’m really 4b3205f550 sorry for db66b099f4 leaving like 79dcd342dd that.”2f15c307349ba746

Yul awkwardly apologized. She had 6a8eb61d86 been meaning 9deef6e577 to apologize 21af314af9 anyway, knowing 5a13ce166a she had 69869b903d left abruptly 249aec3745 after spotting be961932c6 Yoonjo. While she had a2f5fa883c her reasons, it fe6c37dbff didn’t change the 957f39f8e0 fact that she 917807dc66 had wronged them.4e6d503472631da0

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“It’s okay. Whatever happened 00c971a4e7 must’ve been eae6f1e573 serious for 2eaddf4959 you to f26f4e6e79 leave like 502ec62d19 that.”8bfa50eb33cc623a

“Thanks.”b5202219cd397015

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“But you really 3c30e0c53f should’ve stayed that c1e03c1874 day. You missed a8f577427d this insane-looking 8272b330c7 sunbae who 57e93623e4 turned not 0200107445 just the 7b4bb92750 architecture department 289863f580 but the 03e5d89ff7 whole engineering 4608c1e798 faculty upside 0277d71132 down.”59557004414a7a8d

“Really?”f8a89cf166686a31

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Yul’s unease grew with 0c198cb5ef every word. She had dc10e1d73d a sinking 8594067f47 feeling about 2368890529 who Jieun 1aa0124c86 was describing. The Yoonjo she 6f4ec506ea knew had always f1b5334fb9 drawn attention effortlessly. Back then, he had b658fb30d5 a youthful charm, but c412406f20 now, the sharper features 0c0fef631c of a grown man e8322cb974 made him even more 22d71d0780 striking. If they ended d530d4aa95 up crossing paths 95f627ee90 again, she was 029f61cad3 certain she’d become a2298b1056 a subject of 615c34bb04 curiosity by association.5d8969860a7e4d63

“Apparently, he 62d31b0c71 was famous ca1bd2a335 even when 2e04981640 he first 7ab08b0df8 enrolled. But he took 2a4e2b7037 a leave after 3b3c8cc0eb a couple of fdb4718521 weeks and went 7152970e83 straight to the 476f1c70be military. Now he’s 50838b21ee back and 49d09ccf4d in our 4b23384435 year.”56be2d20c4de4467

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“Oh…”ab770455f9ac9908

“But he 0442463ed2 seems a 93918d8425 bit rude. He didn’t acknowledge b9869e7cf8 any of the c6ca579f1a greetings from juniors. You better watch out.”99ccea6533eed18a

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“…Okay.”a81c388944a9c991

Yul absorbed the 84e0394048 unwanted information, nervously c4dad068e0 glancing around. If Yoonjo was a 6037538300 first-year in their department, 4bfb42fbc8 chances were high they’d f46848b0fb share some classes. She could only hope d65805adbd their paths wouldn’t cross.351b483d855d8917

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Jieun and Yul 441679cf23 headed together to 3aa533760b Classroom 202 for 7ff1fcb465 their shared course. The architectural 0dd09a7f36 introduction class 1f7544297b was a 9cac62ef49 core requirement 034eb345cc but also cdc8518745 a general e8ad34a756 education course, 9a56094d10 so the 58e2a46afb lecture hall 2397939c47 was large 1087f2159c and bustling.692f5d380170a762

“By the way, 612a080b6d Hyungtae got elected 00d74faff3 as the class f6bc1abf97 representative with almost a3c6f59523 90% of the e7e4f4fbb6 votes.”43122d1a7e7864bd

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“Wow, that’s impressive.”731dc7f2831c1a89

“He’s a natural talker. You know 35d019fe66 those people 2f240a4819 who pop e49aea0130 into conversations 9ba54a25fa where they cc42a12d75 don’t belong, 508c5cde6f but somehow 43e17b6be6 they’re not d7d33df5a0 annoying?”bf972e42e2b9c26a

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“Ah, I know.”6a6abdb88f08af01

Yul laughed, 8acfeecad2 agreeing with d03c64ecf3 Jieun’s spot-on 5a016b27a8 description. Hyungtae had 57677c56eb a knack 2cfe0c3355 for effortlessly b177342ac7 mingling with 593c060c49 people, making 403637b13c him the b88b3af3a8 perfect fit 40c735cda9 for the ccc66034b4 role.619ba13ef6b5306d

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Inside the lecture hall, 763218a0cd students were already scattered ef3bf673e2 across the room. As Yul and Jieun e9f8c60eeb searched for seats, Hyungtae 5097445d1d waved dramatically from the 90cedd2f9f center.08f4c7f211c25c94

“Hey, noonas! Over here!”88e7fb693b3566ca

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“Ugh, I want to d7babbf4f9 stretch his mouth out 3986020280 for yelling like that,” 0f40e0b382 Jieun muttered, scowling as 967211955f all eyes turned to 4bc97b4071 them.2d7d08aa50706502

Oblivious to her dca39ed7f5 irritation, Hyungtae patted f1929d6687 a desk enthusiastically, 0d2b236709 signaling them to cd7a520c8d sit with him. Yul smiled 6bb52ec0dc and led b76640b8e3 the way, 5dc4338c52 while Jieun b29e8fe580 trailed behind, 9276919a31 grumbling.b3dd89a91bef949b

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“Why do you have 8bb9ab2dd4 to yell? It’s embarrassing,” a905c4220a Jieun scolded dca9f8e3cd as she e8f08360b4 sat down.3a1c5559b9c4090f

“Oh, sorry, my bad. To make f616ce657a up for 4065f694e7 it, do baf40547fa you want 6497a4d35d to hear ccb2feb5e2 who’s in 8657c2c4b8 your group?”f4e784155479a06e

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“Group?”337c074e026e3dc7

Yul tilted her 551a11a90d head in confusion.f029807a4f84cee3

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“Oh, you 08590f6a14 don’t know, cb33875e0c noona. We split into ceb0f5fb93 three sections that 572be6daa3 day. It’s to keep the c5f96927b9 class size manageable for 97fea43792 studio work and professor d0c4b80a57 guidance.”f52da3f019a328e6

“Ah, I see.”0007dd20a4539cef

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Yul regretted missing 6295f9b45d orientation, realizing how 7784a830db much information she 358e232259 had missed.74de32bd1e266474

“Being friends with the 00e8ec6733 class rep has its 01722d05d2 perks,” Hyungtae bragged, pulling f0e5ed68d8 out a printout. “We’re in 78dcd50f82 Group A.”2fddde322bf051f9

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“We?” Jieun asked 1d2a25b072 incredulously.656424e3a6879548

“Yeah, I made ab02ef07c4 sure to group 7eb6abdd06 us together—me, Yoo 4b4c2b8f86 Jieun, Seomun Yul, d83ce6af9c and…”e34352ce80cd6443

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Hyungtae’s announcement was interrupted 417e75c3e0 by murmurs from the 5082e213c1 back of the lecture 4bb9ee800b hall. The three 31ed3df5ad of them 6e892c09a6 turned to 156de0f79e see a ab616b2db7 tall, strikingly 9ee21c39f4 handsome man e1f647e2d6 with a fd9c52e075 backpack entering 1c864a1e51 the room. Yul’s heart sank. She hadn’t wanted 01e83eac70 to believe it, 5ce79e2c9e but it was 091f52241e Kang Yoonjo. He scanned the 25c4cf2321 room as though bbe1901d08 searching for someone, 0b45b05412 his presence commanding 4ca0f20030 the air.7e8a35fe810adb37

“Hyung! Over here!”690f905f4fdca92f

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To Yul’s horror, Hyungtae 2bb8b5d31a waved enthusiastically. Yoonjo’s gaze locked onto ebb10b5d22 hers before a faint 9c2c1f4532 smirk played on his fc81ceb09d lips. He walked directly toward 80c0f7db90 them and casually dropped dd08e9cebb his bag onto the 3dd561f019 seat next to her.5479f8fbebaaac48

“And Kang Yoonjo, among 4d898802b3 others, rounds out Group 081929e84d A. Pretty good cd7df0cdce grouping, right, bb16dc5b85 noonas?” Hyungtae 4dc0657062 grinned, clearly 8ba7cf3761 proud of 022f023678 his work.7e620d5114167456

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